On 20 September 2023, Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, was criticized for saying : "The use of veto is an absolutely legitimate tool laid out in the (UN) Charter with the aim of preventing decisions that could lead to the organization's breakup," . But what he said is also a way of saying "it is not, however, necessarily a legitimate tool to oppose Security Council resolutions for the UN to interfere with and stop the invasion of another country by a permanent member". It is a significant inference. This puts the ball in China's court. If China joins the rest of the permanent membership of the Security Council and condemns the cross border land grab of Russia, then votes to send UN troops to enforce a withdrawal by the Russians, then, by implication, Lavrov would not argue Russia's veto could prevent such a move. China would receive global kudos for its courage, and the war would end.